It was sometime in July when Nevan Cassidy and his wife bought a 120 year old house in Bennington that they planned to renovate and resell.
Cassidy told select board members at a recent meeting that he started working to secure the permits shortly after he bought the house. He said he received two permits from the town; one for the construction of the porch and deck and another for demolition and remodeling work.
“I came and got them (the permits) and I thought that because I had a building permit in hand, I could start building,” he said.
Cassidy had completed the porch when a town official said construction had been premature because of a town water main line that runs along two sides of the house.
The town has a 15-foot wide easement on either side of the water line, or 7 ½ feet on each side.
“If you look at the map that means the town owns one great big corner of our property,” Cassidy said.
The town sought legal advice regarding the matter from Barton Mayer, a municipal attorney for Upton & Hatfield, LLP.
Cassidy said he was a little worried at first about potential attorney fees, but that town administrators have been “comforting and nice” about the circumstance.
He said the town has worked out a deal and they are in the process of amending the deed.
He said he plans to continue fixing the house up and selling it off once the work is complete.
Select board members said the town probably shouldn’t have offered Cassidy the building permits in the first place due to the proximity of the water main line to the house.
It could become a problem in the event that a burst occurs on the line, although Cassidy said the porch could be dismantled quickly to access the line.
Abby Kessler can be reached at 924-7172, ext. 234 or akessler@ledgertranscript.com.